Cast in Ruin: A Taxonomy of Post-Apocalypses

This week, Charlie Jane Anders wrote an article about the disappearance of the "advanced civilization fallen to barbarism" story that used to be so prevalent in popular genre media. She considers a couple of reasons, one of which is that it has been supplanted by the post-apocalyptic story.  That got me thinking about whether those sorts of stories might be related in some way, and that led me to hypothesize a taxonomy of post-apocalyptic tales.

The first thing to consider is: Did the apocalypse happen to the viewpoint characters or their culture or did it happen to someone else?

Happened to the viewpoint characters/their culture:

If it happened recently you're dealing with a standard post-apocalyptic (or perhaps apocalyptic, if it's ongoing) tale. Examples would include The Walking Dead, I Am Legend, and Night of the Comet, just to name a few.

If it happened in the remote past, then we're dealing with post-apocalyptic fantasy like Thundarr or the Heiro novels of Sterling Lanier. There is a variant where the apocalypse is really slow moving: the dying earth story. It's tempting not to consider these post-apocalyptic stories at all, except for the fact that at least some of them (the Zothique tales of Clark Ashton Smith and The Night Land by William Hope Hodgson, to give a couple of examples) seem very concerned with pointing out how things are winding down to their inevitable end.

Happened to someone else:
If the apocalyptic event happened recently, and the viewpoint characters have arrived to discover this, we're probably dealing with a science fiction mystery or horror narrative. The Star Trek episode "Miri" probably falls into this category. (Some will protest that the apocalypse in "Miri" hardly counts as recent, being hundreds of years ago. I'd argue the extremely slow aging of the surviving children and the resemblance of the fallen culture to the culture of Star Trek's reviewers in the sixties, gives the story an immediacy that it's internal chronology doesn't reflect.)

If the fall is a remote event, then the "civilization fallen to barbarism" story comes into play (showing up in numerous Star Trek episodes like "Omega Glory" and "Spock's Brain" and as a backdrop in a lot of lost world or planetary romance fiction). If the civilization is mostly gone, but it's influence can still be felt, we're probably out of the post-apocalyptic genre and into science fiction, horror or a combination of the two--but not necessarily. The science fiction and/or horror option is exemplified by works like At The Mountains of Madness, Forbidden Planet, Quatermass and the Pit, and (again) a number of Star Trek episodes like "That Which Survives."

The stories in this category I would consider as in the post-apocalyptic genre itself would be of the "cautionary tale" or "sins of the past" sort. Ralph Bakshi's Wizards fits here, as do two unusual, effective, and Oscar nominated Christmas cartoons from MGM: Peace on Earth (1939) and Good Will to Men (1955).

There are less clear-cut stories that are inbetween these two poles. In this group are stories where the relationship of the viewpoint characters (or the viewer) to the apocalypse or the occurrence of the apocalypse, itself, is saved for a reveal at the end. The original Planet of the Apes is a classic example here, but Teenage Cave Man (1958) also fits the bill.

Also, we can place many so-called "Shaggy God" stories here, as the apocalypse leads to an Adam and Eve scenario. The Twilight Zone episode "Probe 7, Over and Out" is practically the archetypal version of this tale, but it has turned up as recently as Battlestar Galactica (2004).

Look--There's A Map!

Work has been grueling this week! More of my regular posting content is forthcoming, but for now enjoy another map. This one is from Don Lawrence's Trigan Empire. Marvel at its mysteriousness!

Warlord (& Wonder Woman) Wednesday

Here's another installment of my examination of  the adventures DC Comics' Travis Morgan--The Warlord.  The earlier installments can be found here...

"Land of the Lost" (parts 1-5)

Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #179-183 (May-September 2002) Written by Phil Jimenez, Penciled by Roy Allan Martinez & Gabriel Rearte, Inked by Martinez, Andy Lanning, Ray Synder & Marlo Alquiza

Synopsis: Wonder Woman and her boyfriend Trevor Barnes wind up in Skartaris accidentally (thinking they were going to ancient Atlantis). They fight some dinosaurs and meet some little people who tell them where they are:

It's seems that Villainy, Inc. (a collection of Wonder Woman foes led by Clea, queen of the Atlantean remnant Venturia) shot for Atlantis and wound up in Skartaris, too. They quickly recovered from the mistake and went about conquering Shamballah.

They have Morgan and Jennifer in a cage while the the sorceress Jinx, does nasty body-warping things to them.

Villainy, Inc. also discovers the computer core beneath the city. Cyborgirl is able to interface with the computer, which Clea believes will allow them to control all of Skartaris and power enough to potential take over the Earth.

Meanwhile, Wonder Woman has freed some captives from Giganta and a group of giants. She begins building an army from the disparate human and nonhuman cultures of Skartaris. She takes that army to Shamballah.

While Wonder Woman takes down Giganta, then fights Clea, Trevor and the army get into the palace and free Dr. Poison's captives/potential subjects--including Machiste and Shakira. Those two attempt to free Morgan and Jennifer, but Jinx attacks them.

While all that's going on, Trinity reveals her plan She had known they were coming to Skartaris all along. Her tendrils allow her to begin to take over Cyborgirl so that she can interface with and reboot the Skartarian master computer. She's actually a creation of the ancient Atlanteans that built the computer, a viral vector intended to reset the system and turn back time to the rule of the Atlanteans.

Waves of energy emanate from the palace, devolving and de-aging the Skartarian forces fighting on both sides. Wonder Woman leaves a subdued Clea and storms the castle. She saves Machiste and Shakira from Jinx and finds Morgan and Jennifer who tell her where to find the computer core.

Dr. Poison comes to save Jinx and is almost taken down by Morgan and friends, but escapes with (of course) poison. She runs to the computer core, too.

Trevor (who's already there) fills Wonder Woman in on what's happening. Dr. Poison's suggestion that Trinity is a virus and is currently confined to the core--but will spread to all the computers in Skartaris--gives Trevor and idea. He talks to Cyborgirl, convincing her to fight Trinity and regain her humanity. She does and manages to contain the Trinity virus in the core, which Wonder Woman destroys with Clea's trident. The energy wave stops.

Evil is defeated. Clea is presumably de-aged and nowhere to be found. The Warlord gets cheers:

Meanwhile, Wonder Woman and Trevor (who did most of the world saving) are going to do a bit of rebuilding before heading home.

Things to Notice:

• Wonder Woman spends five issues in Skartaris, but Morgan and crew only appear in a few panels.

Where it comes from: 
Clea and Villiany, Inc. conquered Shamballah to take control of the super-computer beneath it, first seen in issue #15. Not only does the computer differ in appearance from previous portrayals, but Clea says it controls all of Skartaris--something it's never been shown to do before.

There are many humanoids depicted that seem call backs to previous issues (centaurs, titans, dwarfs, fishmen, winged men), but none of them are depicted in such a way as to make it clear--in fact, some seem very different in character.

People in the City

After Saturday's Detectives & Daredevils Google+ game set in the world of Weird Adventures, there was some discussion of NPCs that have showed up in my various games. Here are a few that might still be encountered in the City in 5889:

Bookman, Rawley: Superintendent at an apartment building in Morningstar Hills on the border with Solace.

DeWytt, Lola: Secretary for Victory Detective Agency.

Graves, Zacherly: A Barrowman cemetery manager.

Hardluck Hooligans: A kid gang in Hardluck. Prominent members include: Knuckles (the tough one), Da Brain (the smart one), Freckles (freckles), Topper (oversized tophat), Juniper (tomboy in an aviator helmet), Sunshine and Smiles (creepy, somber kids), the Kid in Yellow (weird kid from Little Carcosa), and Marbles. They have an ongoing feud with the Grumpf.

Hazzard, Hew: Wealthy industrialist, inventor, and playboy. His headquarters and research laboratory are in Marquesa near the airfield.

Shreck, Eldmore: Tall, portly lawyer, parnter in the firm Shreck & Wail. They are the executors of the estate of Charles Ranulf Urst.

Snow, Sara: Platinum-haired beauty who is either a cat that can turn into a woman or a woman who turns into a cat. Grifter and sometime gangster's moll.

Throne, H. Leland: Antiquarian bookseller in Grimalkin Village. He doesn't have any magical tomes, but does have works that deal with occult or esoteric topics. He also runs a side business in racy photography. He sells the photos to collectors and sometimes uses them for blackmail.

Two-Teeth Drexel: Hell Syndicate thug with oversized incisors. Previously in Barton Blanchefleur's gang.

Vandemaur, Urania: Matriarch of an Old Money family with a mansion on "Paupers Row."

Wail, Tophias: Short, bespectacled lawyer, partner in the firm Shreck & Wail. They are the executors of the estate of Charles Ranulf Urst.

Mesa of the Sky-Vikings

In the Hidden Land beyond a cave in the Superstition Mountains, there is an imposing, solitary mesa rising above the jungle. The mesa is some 1200 feet tall and steep-sided. Its flat top is about 900 ft. long and 400 ft. across at its widest. Located there are the longhouses and fortress of the Sky-Vikings.

Interbreeding with captives from the jungle tribes and exposure to the tropical sun and turned their pale complexions darker, but they often retain the fair hair of their ancestors. Their material cultural is similar, but adapted to their surroundings.

Most dramatically, they have replaced their forebears seagoing raids with aerial attacks. The Sky-Vikings have domesticated the pteranodons that nest on the mesa and use them as mounts. As there society depends on the raids for most of their food and raw materials, they train from a young age to command the flying beasts. Their society is male-dominated; only rarely are women able to prove themselves as pteranodon-riding raiders. Some jarls are more permissive than others, however.

The Sky-Vikings know the working of metal,and have metal spearheads, knives, and short-swords. The rarely waist their limited supplies on armor.

Another Friday Map

This map from Amethyst: Princess of Gemworld throws realism completely out the window. In later stories, Gemworld becomes an actual planet. I think this was better.

Here's some details about Gemworld and points of interest.

Do You Dare Enter...The Setting Crypt?

While I've got indices for a couple of the settings I've discussed here over the years, there are some that languish in the blog archives--as well as in a still-unfinished state. Several of them I do intend to get back to eventually:

Gods, Demi-gods, and Strangeness is an ongoing concern. It's Greek mythology as science fantasy with a hint of Kirby. It got an index post and later posts here.

Apocalypse Underground is a D&D setting that rationalizes game aspects like increasing hit points and some class abilities, while dwelling on a horror of fighting apocalyptic struggle with monsters in dark, cramped spaces beneath the earth. Here's the first post. Follow the tag for later ones.

Planet of the Elves is post-apocalyptic fantasy where Man is a distant memory. It draws on Bakshi's Wizards and a slew of comics for inspirations: particular the fantasy stylings of Wally Wood and Mike Ploog. Read the first post, then follow the tag.

Pulp Space is a alternate history and an alternate Spelljammer setting. It starts at the end of War of the Worlds and ends in a 1930s where occultism and alien science has taken volatile politics of Earth out into colonies on other planets in the solar system. It starts here and continues with the tag.

There are other setting riffs back there, but these are the big ones.